How old is your club?

[jonnybellman]

1966 - Dudley is 60 this year

 

[BCA Membership]

Wow, loads of interesting things coming out of this thread!
Looks like the 2026 Annual report will need at least a double page spread to get all these anniversaries in!

 

[BCA Membership]

'What have the BCA ever done for us?!!'

I have often thought this would make a good meme - what have the BCA ever done for us?

Apart from the insurance, bolts in caves, funding conservation and access projects, youth and development projects, the qualifications scheme, the library, supporting Ghar Parau etc etc

(But I am biased as the BCA also pay me )

 

[wellyjen]

1966 - Dudley is 60 this year

CreweCPC will be 70 next year. Discussions for a suitable celebration have started.

 

[The Old Ruminator]

The Tuesday Diggers is about 20 years old. Its free to join but you must be old and fairly miserable. Basically club activities involves poking large overhead rocks and having your photo plastered all over social media. The traditional pie and crisp lunches underground often raise the odd wan smile.

 

[mikem]

Rucksack club have a very detailed index that doesn't really work on a mobile (they do suggest larger screen):
CAVING [E.A. Baker was a member from 1904 to 1908]
1904:32 “The Club below Ground”
1905:31 “Underground Work in 1905”
1905:33 “Recent Work in Somerset, Yorkshire and Ireland”
1913:173 “Recent Cave Campaigns”
1930:452 “Alum Pot Meet”
1935:61 “Scratchings Underground”
1936:179 “Further Scratchings Underground”
1937:323 “Manifold Scratchings Underground”
1938:56 “Th’Ole”
1939:212 “Some Caves in North Wales”
1939:214 “The New Passage in Giants’ Hole”
1941:277 “Some Caves in South Wales”
1942:359 “The Potter on the Hearth”
1942:381 “A Historical Note on the Alderley Copper Mines”
1943/44:8 “Excursions Underground”
1946:163 “A Mendip Weekend”
1947:279 “Holes and Corners - May 1946”
1948:77 “Underground in Denbighshire”
1948:78 “Swildon’s Hole, Somerset”
1949:126 “Caving in County Clare”
1949:163 “Bagshaw Cavern”
1950:278 “Cave near Grange-over-Sands”
1950:279 “Puffin Island”
1951:360 “Caving in County Fermanagh”
1954:270 “Wild Doings at Dyserth”
1956:34 “The Underground River of Labouiche”
1966:216 “Some Caves in the High Pyrenees”
1967:244 “Cave Exploration in Tanzania”
1972:12 “Cave Exploration in the Kalahari Desert”
1981:15 “Ambition and Ability”
1981:20 “Life’s Ups and Downs”
1983:5 “In Search of the World’s Deepest Cave”
1991:41 “You Little Tinker”
1991:80 “Travels with a Lady”
1994:4 “Autumn Leaves”
1995/96:79 “Meteora Magic”
2005:61 “The Magic of Caving”
2007:118 “Venturing under the Welsh Mountains”
2009:45 “The Caver’s Apprentice”
2010:116 “Titan to Peak Roof – The Ultimate Trip”
2011:157 “Magpie”
2011:170 “Lanzarote — Above and Below”
2011:210 “The Club’s Speleological Record”
Meets
1930:452 “Alum Pot Meet”
1933:293 Gaping Ghyll
1938:93 Joint Meet with YRC at Goyden Pot, Nitherdale
1946:194 Carl’s Walk, Middleton Dale
1949:163 “Bagshaw Cavern”
1957:155 Joint meet with GC at Gaping Ghyll
1958:237 Lancaster Pot
1958:237 Joint meet with GC at Lancaster Pot
1963:298 Joint pot-holing Meet with GC
1984/85:70 Clapham: Walk, Cave or Climb
1986/87:86 Easegill Caverns
1988:95 Caving Meet: Craig y Cilau
1989:105 Derbyshire Caving Meet - Giants Hole
1994:103 Caving Meet
1996/97:122 Yorkshire Caving
1996/97:123 West Mine, Alderley Edge
1998/99:123 Caving Meet - Yorkshire Dales
2003/04:176 Caving meet under Yorkshire Dales
2003/04:178 Mines meet
2007:118 Under the mountain mines meet at Rhosydd
Photos
1913:f174 Wookey Hole - Third Chamber
1913:f176 Great Chamber, Mitchelstown Old Cave
1913:f180 Slope above Noon’s Hole
1931:f27 “Dropping the Pilot” (Photo)
1935:f62 Jonah in Whale’s Belly
1935:f66 Ladder Work
1936:f182 Stalactite and Stalagmite
1936:f186 The Author (SF Forrester) Scratching Underground
1939:f212 The Gop Cave
1941:f278 Straw Stalactites
1946:f163 Main Gorge, G.B. Cave (Mendips)
1946:f163 Stalagmite Boss in Main Gorge, G.B. Cave (Mendips)
1948:f80 Swildon’s Hole
1949:f128 Pollnagollum - T Humphreys
1967:f244 Rock Drapery (Cave in Tanzania)
1991:45 S Sinclair entering cave (Fuente de Escuain, Spain)
1991:48 The Team (Fuente de Escuain Cave, Spain)
1991:85 J Harrison in Pippikin Pot
2005:62 Group in Notts II, North Yorkshire
2005:63 Julia Gray in Notts II, North Yorkshire
2005:64 Ralph Coates on the 365ft Big Pitch of Gaping Gill
2005:66 Jed Scott and others trapped by floodwaters in the Gouffre Berger, France
2007:118 Rhosydd entrance
2007:119 Entrance to Rhosydd mine
2007:119 Intake shaft
2007:119 Under the mountain mines meet 2008
2007:119 Rhosydd tunnel
2009:2 Dave William’s new 300ft route in Peak Cavern
2009:47 Andy Stewart in a tight squeeze
2009:91 Cec Rhodes in Elephant’s Cave, Llandudno
2009:fc Paul Dyson in Swinsto’s
2010:118 Geoff Middlehurst in Peak Cavern
2010:120 Titan - UK’s largest natural shaft
2011:157 Magpie Mine
2011:158 Dave and John Williams abseiling down Red Soil Mine
2011:160 Sough entrance
2011:211 Dowal Pits, 1903
2011:213 John Rooke Corbett in 1905, possibly at Heights of Abraham
Maps & Diagrams
1956:f38 Underground River of Labouiche
1956:f39 Gouffre of Terrefort
1981:14 Sima GESM, Spain
1981:22 Nettle Pot, Castleton
1983:4 Pozu del Xitu (Spain)
1991:40 Fuente de Escuain Cave (Spain)
Also
1903:13 Lecture
1913:177 Caving in Ireland
1930:466 Discusses potholing
1930:466 Informal Indoor Meet - caving
1931:82 Lecture - Gaping Ghyll and Other Notable Caverns
1934:397 Engine Vein Shaft, Alderley
1943/44:35 Club Night - Recent Underground Explory
1948:65 Lecture - Underground Yorkshire
1952:17 Early caving exploits
1952:78 Caving notes from 1903
1952:87 Lecture - Some Pot-holing Adventures
1954:279 Journal of the Craven Pothole Club, Vol I, No 5 reviewed
1957:147 Lecture - caving
1964:61 Lecture - potholing
1986/87:95 Caving book - “Beneath the Mountains”
1998/99:97 Caving with Tony Humphreys
2005:157 Clive Morton setting off fireworks in Gaping Gill
2011:200 Vegetarian Cave Dweller in 1901
[Historical articles highlighted]

In members index for E.A.B, but not necessarily above:
Indoor meets
1905:11 Lecture - Recent Cave Exploration
1907:53 Lecture on Cave Exploration
Activities
1904:33 Caving at Castleton
1904:33 Caving at Eyam & Dove Valley
1904:36 In North Wales
1905:31 Caving
1918:268 Climbs at Laddow
1948:79 At Swildon’s Hole
1949:127 Caving in Ireland
Also
1904:7 Suggests alliance with Kyndwr Club
1905:48 “The Voice of the Mountains” reviewed
1907:54 Presents book to Library
1908:121 Presents books to Library
1908:135 Article in CC Journal
1908:135 Reference to CC Journal
1909:194 Presents own book to Library
1909:204 Revises Baddeley Guide “The Peak District”
1909:205 Co-author of “The Netherworld of Mendip”
1913:192 Reference to book
1917:171 Reference to book
1924:233 “The Highlands with Rope and Rucksack” reviewed
1925:343 Contributed to “Mountains of Snowdonia”
1926:465 Contributed to “Mountains of Snowdonia”
1927:5 In HE Scott’s Reminiscences
1952:18 In J Wilding’s History of Club’s First Fifty Years
2010:167 Early members who climbed and caved with Jim Puttrell
2011:210 Active in early speleological activities of club

Well after E.A.B.
2005:60 On caving expedition in France
2009:46 Caving in Pennines with A Stewart

 

[amw]

Hades Caving Club was formed in 1974, so a youngster. https://hadescc.org

 

[Katie]

The Eldon are 70 in 2027 and have plans underway for a celebration which will be open to all cavers

 

[Aggybat]

Chelsea Spelæological Society are 70 this year.

 

[Addy]

Westminster Speleo (WSG) 76 years - (1950).

 

[nearlywhite]

It was the SUSS 65th weekend before last but if you want to count the caving section of the Sheffield university mountaineering club (that formally split in 1961) then the club goes back to at least the 40s, and probably pre war.

So not just drawing it's pension but sagely nodding at my grandparents calling them whippersnappers.

 

[The Old Ruminator]

The Tuesday Diggers ( mining section ) annual bbq took place yesterday. Celebrating the fact that some of us are still alive but only just. We shall struggle on for a year or two yet . How nice to have a club with no rules, no constitution, no club hut and blessed of all no committee. You could ask are we really a club though ? Bet we do more digging than many clubs . In my later diving days we were called The TOSSERS. An acronym for the The Old Senile and Smelly but sadly I forget the rest. Again none of the encumbrances of committees and such like. Sadly a few TOSSERS sort of fell by the wayside but died doing what they loved best. Never done a proper club caving trip in 65 years. Nobody ever left either club they just died. ( Remembering Tony Boycott and Pete Rose TD's . Stuart , Uncle Al, Steve and a few more from the diving world. )

 

[Cantclimbtom]

The Tuesday Diggers.. ... but died doing what they loved best... ...

Try to be careful and respectful here due to the topic.

But the wording of your post makes it sound like the most dangerous digging club ever!!! I assume unintended (either that or you just sabotaged any efforts to recruit any more diggers)

 

[Lankyman]

The Tuesday Diggers ( mining section ) annual bbq took place yesterday.

Nobody ever left either club they just died.

You should have your annual do at the Hotel California ....

 

[The Old Ruminator]

Try to be careful and respectful here due to the topic.

But the wording of your post makes it sound like the most dangerous digging club ever!!! I assume unintended (either that or you just sabotaged any efforts to recruit any more diggers)

I was actually referring to the diving group. As yet the T D's have remained relatively all in one piece. Taken out of context a little bit.

 

[Steve Clark]

Fylde Mountaineering Club - Founded in 1950, 75th anniversary last year. We've had a small group of cavers active through-out. We can still get a dozen+ members out on our Christmas novice caving trip, but a handful out on ad-hoc meets is more typical.

To my knowledge, we've never been a BCA club (we are affiliated to the BMC), or been too involved with the wider community of northern caving. We were the original leaseholders at Bull Pot Farm before the Red Rose took in on.

Notable achievements being the discovery of Heron Pot & Crescent Pot in the 1950s and our Mick Tolley luring Frank Pearson off the crags and underground. Pete Llewellyn was also an active member for many years.

 

[bagpuss]

Cheddar caving club, 28 years.
Bristol and District 18 years ago (formally Hewlett Packard cc 36 years)

 

[GMaverick]

Shropshire Caving & Mining Club - 65 years this year.

 

[vikingaero]

From our OGM yesterday, I believe Wealden will be 60 in Sept 2027

 

[mike_d]

The Gritstone Club (formed 1922) is still active and celebrated its 100th a few years ago.

Although these days the members are more climbers/mountaineers/walkers/skiers than pure cavers, we still get out (under!) some times.

I believe the club's greatest achievements were the discoveries of Needlehouse Gill Cave and, notably, Knocks Fell Caverns.

One of the club's exploratory cavers from back then (alongside Roger Sutcliffe and others) was Ken Wood, who passed away last November. I was lucky to share a couple pints with him in (what turned out to be) his final year, hearing stories of yesteryear - a real privilege. If it's of interest to the climbers on here, alongside his caving exploits, Ken also did some really notable FAs on the local grit (see: https://www.ukclimbing.com/logbook/ticklists/ken_woods_gritstone_fas-10499#info), including True Grit at Brimham which still packs a 'ell of a punch today.